KOTA KINABALU: A food delivery rider was fined a total of RM24,000 by the Sessions Court here on Friday for three charges of using as genuine three bank statements to get a tender to supply cooked food to a primary school in Pitas.
Mohd Zul Azri Abd Shani was jointly charged with Linah Adou, a housewife.
The accused who was fined RM8,000, in default, four months’ jail for each of the charges, informed judge Abu Bakar Manat that he was willing to pay the RM17,000 fine of Linah because he had borrowed the trading license from her.
In passing the fine, the court said that since Mohd Zul Azri had expressed his willingness to pay for Linah’s fine, the judge fined her RM5,000, RM6,000 and another RM6,000, in default, three months’ imprisonment respectively.
The two accused persons had pleaded guilty to their charges under Section 471 of the Penal Code, punishable under Section 465 of the same Code, which carries a jail term of up to two years or a fine, upon conviction.
Mohd Zul Azri, 41, told the court that he was willing to pay Linah’s fine as he claimed that he was the one who managed all the statements at a bank branch on November 24, 2016 and he had borrowed her license for the said matter.
“I will pay the lower amount of fine for her because I’m responsible in managing this matter at the bank and I borrowed her license to get the tender.
“I couldn’t bear to be sent to jail because my mother is sick now,” Mohd Zul Azri told the court.
Mohd Zul Azri, who was represented by counsel PJ Perira, and Linah, 43, admitted to using as genuine the statements dated July 30, August 31 and September 30, all in 2016, at the State Education Ministry.
Linah, who was unrepresented, told the court that she is a housewife and his husband is a farmer. They have four kids.
The fact of the case stated that both the accused are friends and Linah had lent her trading license to Mohd Zul Azri for the tender and they managed to get the tender which is worth million of ringgit.
However, Mohd Zul Azri was arrested on January 14, 2019 while Linah was apprehended on June 15, 2019 after a branch manager of the bank verified that the statements used by the accused persons were fake.
Earlier, Perira told the court that his client’s application to reduce the fine suggested by the prosecution to be imposed on Mohd Zul Azri was not accepted.
The counsel informed the court that his client could only afford to pay RM4,000 fine for each of the charges.
Mohd Zul Azri had paid all the fines.